New Zealand tennis player Michael Venus may have just won his fifth career doubles title but it's who he'll be playing with next week that has got him even more excited.
Michael Venus (L) and Mate Pavic (R) Photo: Photosport
Venus and his partner, Croatian Mate Pavic, won their fourth title this season and first on grass at the latest ATP event in Netherlands this morning.
The pair beat the first-time team of Dominic Inglot and Raven Klaasen 3-6, 6-3 11-9.
Venus and Pavic also won titles in Auckland, Montpellier and Marseille earlier this year.
After losing the first set, Venus and Pavic gained their second break of the second set at 4-3 and evened the match the next game.
Inglot and Klaasen led 7/5 in the match tie-break, but Venus and Pavic came back to lead 9/7.
The Brit and South African, though, made it interesting and levelled the tie-break at 9/9. But Pavic/Venus won the next two points to earn their fifth career tour-level final together.
The pair collect $24,000 each and 250 ATP doubles rankings points.
Venus said he was happy with how they responded after the French Open.
"We were a bit disappointment with how the French Open went so to bounce back straight away and play well on our first week on the grass, it was great for us and hopefully we can just keep building on things leading up the next two weeks, then into Wimbledon."
However, the pair are parting ways this week and Venus is heading to Germany for the next ATP 500 tournament where he will be paired with world number six and grand slam runner-up, Kei Nishikori of Japan.
"He knows what he's doing on the tennis court, he obviously doesn't play doubles that much but I'm sure he'll be fine out there and we get on well so it should be a bit of fun and we'll see how it goes."
Venus said he was in some of the best form of his life this season.
-RNZ
